Dwarves
Dwarves are a widespread people on Telluris, being present in many underground regions. There are minor differences between some of the different dwarven peoples, though all bear similar characteristics. Sulvai are a long-lived folk, even moreso than other Dwarves, and all strive to attain the dedication, strenght and innovation of their founder Sulvan and the paragons that followed. Razdissi dwarves are believed to be related to the Sulvai, but many differences have emerged during their separation, mainly due to hybridisation with Ore Elves from Eyrecradia in ages past. They are generally tough and bearded, but their skin is normally greyish black, similar to burned charcoal, and they tend to be nearly man-height. Their hair is most commonly iron grey, but rust red and coal black occur nearly as often. Eyes are black, orange or blue in most Razdissi. They're not as long lived as Keldagrim dwarves, with their lifespans being closer to humans. This is probably due to slight incompatibilities between Elven and Dwarven metabolisms. In personality, Razdissi are passionate about their work and tools; a common joke is that when you give a Razdissi a shovel, he'll spend a week getting to know it's name before using it to dig. Razdissi worship the very ore that they mine, in a somewhat odd animistic tradition. It is believed respectful to make a small sacrifice of plant matter (such as smoking a pipeful of pipeweed) before beginning mining. Keldagrim dwarves are sturdy, very heavily bearded folk, with even the women having hints of beards. Beards are considered indicative of martial proficiency in Keldagrim culture. Keldagrim dwarves are not believed to be closely related to the Sulvai or Razdissi. Mularuhm dwarves are short and stocky, bearded and bushy-eyed, much like most dwarves elsewhere, with a life expectancy of around 150–200 years if not killed sooner. Although long-lived, they suffer from slower breeding rates than many surface dwelling races. The largest number of children ever recorded to be born in a lifelong union remains to be five, and such was an extreme circumstance. The average tends to be closer to two, if not one, and though some developments have allowed for faster breeding the majority of population growth comes from the long lives of all the inhabitants. Most Mularuhm children are born when their parents are in their forties, and some of the later births occurred when the mother was in her nineties. Though it's not impossible for Mularuhm dwarves to have children while in their twenties, such is rare and often seen as the act of rash members of the community. There is also a propensity among the Mularuhm people to produce more males than females, leading to a pressure on their numbers. Neighbouring the Mularuhm dwarves are the Deep Dwarves of Asterith, believed to be closely-related to the Mularuhm dwarves. They too have thick bushy hair and beards and a general stocky shape. Unlike the Mularuhm dwarves, however, the Deep Dwarves are often lighter of skin and hair color, and the pupils of their eyes have grown larger and adapted more fully to the darkness of the caves, making them more sensitive to light. Also, unlike the dwarves of Mularuhm, the Deep Dwarves seem more virile and capable of producing female offspring which has been a boon to the Mularuhm who have slowly but surely begun to interbreed with those of Asterith. Dwarves also inhabit the nearby Riderock, although their culture is rather different. A small population of dwarves dwells in the far west in the Duchy of Uzan, in the Land of Free Knights. They have interbred extensively with humans, leading to the human population being rather shorter than elsewhere. A short people live in Rannara and have been called dwarves by some, although it seems likely they are not true dwarves and may instead be Gnomes. Category:Dwarves Category:People Category:Peoples of Telluris